"Are you the planner for this birthday party?"
Liu Yina looked at the man in the suit in front of her and asked, condescendingly.
"Yes, Miss. I am," the man in the suit responded without any hesitation. After all, she was Liu Jinweiâs precious daughter, and it was well known that Liu Jinwei doted on her. Who would dare provoke her?
Liu Yina was quite pleased. "I heard my father invited quite a few celebrities to this birthday party. I want a list of the stars attending so I can host them!"
Liu Yina thought this was a great opportunity to get to know these stars and build good relationships. It would make it easier for her to work in the entertainment industry in the future. Although she had access to many resources because of Liu Jinwei, everything she had was supported by her father in the end.
But Liu Yina did not want just that. What she wanted was to become famous. She hoped to achieve this through her own efforts. It wouldnât do for her father to keep helping her; she had to prove herself too.
In essence, Liu Yina wasnât a bad person. She couldnât understand why netizens disliked her. If Ning Xiaoyue could debut, why couldnât she?
The man in the suit said, "We do have a list. Weâve organized the list of celebrity guests attending Mr. Liuâs birthday. Iâll show it to you immediately, Miss."
Normally, the man in the suit, being the planner of this party, had significant authority. He least liked others meddling in his work.
But since the requester was Liu Yina, it was a different matter. He dared not offend her. Whatever Liu Yina wanted, sheâd get. Even if she wanted to tear his store apart, he could only endure it.
Soon, the man in the suit handed the list of celebrities to Liu Yina.
As she browsed the list, Liu Yina was delighted. "This is fantastic! Several stars I like are coming, including a director. Does this mean my chances of becoming a lead in a movie have greatly increased?"
Suddenly, a name caught Liu Yinaâs eye.
"Ning Xiaoyue!"
Liu Yina was taken aback. Her father had even invited Ning Xiaoyue, and Ning Xiaoyue was not accompanied by her group; she came alone.
This seemed to prove that Ning Xiaoyue was more popular than any member of her group. Otherwise, they wouldnât have invited only Ning Xiaoyue.
"I canât quite understand it. Why is Ning Xiaoyue so popular? Why does she have so many fans?" Liu Yina murmured, feeling somewhat discontented. She was only a bit younger than Liu Shiwen, and fate seemed unfair. Maybe this was the difference between people.
She wanted to figure out why.
She decided to meet Ning Xiaoyue.
"Do you know where Ning Xiaoyue is now?" Liu Yina asked the man in the suit.
The man said, "I do, but Mr. Liu instructed that this must be kept secret and not be disclosed."
Liu Yina became even more curious. "What do you mean? Do you know or not? If you do, tell me. What secret? Am I not supposed to know?"
Seeing Liu Yina appearing slightly annoyed, the man in the suit caved in and said, "Sheâs at Haojiang Grand Hotel. Thatâs all I know, Miss. Please donât ask me, I really donât know anything else, nor do I have anything more to tell you."
The manâs survival instincts were high. Although the Ning Xiaoyue matter wasnât a huge deal, he wanted to stay out of it altogether.
Excited, Liu Yina said, "Alright, you can get on with your work now. Iâm going to visit Ning Xiaoyue."
Liu Yina wanted to see Ning Xiaoyue. She envied Ning Xiaoyueâs high popularity and vast fan base. She also wanted to have lots of fans like Ning Xiaoyue.
She needed to understand why she didnât have as many fans. If it werenât for knowing Ning Xiaoyueâs rural family background, sheâd even suspect that Ning Xiaoyue hired fake followers.
But now, Liu Yina dismissed that thought. She knew Ning Xiaoyue was truly successful. Despite some criticisms online about Ning Xiaoyueâs singing and dancing, she still had many fans and didnât need to hire fakes.
Liu Yina arrived outside the room where Ning Xiaoyue was kept under watch but was stopped by a guard.
"You canât go in. Thatâs Brother Weiâs order, sorry." The guard said.
Liu Yina said, "Iâm Liu Yina, and my father is Liu Jinwei. Are you going to stop me too?"
Hearing she was the bossâs daughter, the guard immediately cowered, quickly opened the door, and apologized profusely, "Iâm really sorry, Miss. Iâm new here and didnât know you were Mr. Liuâs daughter."
Liu Yina didnât make things difficult for the guard. As soon as the door opened, she slipped in.
The guard was stationed there to prevent Ning Xiaoyue from escaping. He couldnât let that happen, so after Liu Yina entered, he closed the door again to prevent Ning Xiaoyue from seizing the opportunity to escape.
Inside the room, Ning Xiaoyue was anxiously waiting. When she saw the door open suddenly, she thought hope had arrived and she could leave, but then the door closed again, and a young woman walked in.
The woman wore glamorous branded clothing, clearly of high status, but her looks were rather average, typical of a common rich girl.
In the past, Ning Xiaoyue knew nothing about fashion or brand names, and she couldnât afford branded clothes. Her clothes were all cheap stall finds.
But since her successful debut, she became familiar with fashion brands, some even approached her for collaborations, giving her clothes to wear. Dresses worth thousands, tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands were given to her.
Because she became a star, gained fame, and when celebrities wore a brand, it was like advertising for them.
Thus, these brands not only gave clothes to Ning Xiaoyue but also paid her. This was the difference between a star and an ordinary person.
A talent show had changed Ning Xiaoyueâs life completely, elevating her from a regular person to a big star, granting her countless fans and immense fameâthese were all part of Ning Xiaoyueâs commercial value.
"Do you know who I am?" Liu Yina asked as soon as she saw Ning Xiaoyue, looking at her hopefully, eager to hear the answer she wanted.
Ning Xiaoyue shook her head, "I donât know you. Who are you?"
Liu Yina was a bit disappointed. She had debuted and become a celebrity, but Ning Xiaoyue didnât recognize her, indicating she truly had little fame.
"My name is Liu Yina. Iâm also an artist in the entertainment industry," Liu Yina said.
Ning Xiaoyue seemed to understand suddenly, "Oh, itâs you. I remember now. Iâve seen reports about you online, sorry, I didnât recall at first."
Liu Yina was stunned. So Ning Xiaoyue had heard of her but couldnât remember her face! It wasnât very hurtful but quite insulting!
She suddenly seemed to understand something about the gap between her and Ning Xiaoyue. Ning Xiaoyue was extraordinarily beautiful, even more so in person than in picturesâa face you couldnât forget once you saw it.
Ning Xiaoyue suddenly grabbed Liu Yinaâs arm, "Please, it was your father who brought me here, right? Can you let me go?"